New Hawaiʻi County Parks and Recreation director highlights projects to finish, projects to begin

Hawaiʻi County’s new Parks and Recreation Director Clayton Honma, who is returning to a position he knows well, plans to focus this time around on “safe, recreational facilities and programs for everyone – visitors and residents.”

Honma had been director of the department from 2012 to 2016, and deputy director of the department from 2009 to 2012 during Mayor Billy Kenoi’s administration.

“Here on Hawaiʻi Island, we recreate from birth to death and it is an important part of life for all of us,” Honma said. “We provide a wide range of services but providing these safe facilities is ultimately the goal.”

Honma, under the new administration of Mayor Kimo Alameda, said the department will be continuing two major projects that have funding set aside from Mayor Mitch Roth’s administration: the Papaʻaloa covered play court and gym and the Miloliʻi Beach Park project.

The beach park is the last of 35 improvement projects that were mandated to meet federal standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. It will involve moving the main pavilion and replacing the parking lot and comfort stations to make them more accessible with new pavement, ramps, concrete walkways and more seating.

The $1.75 million project also includes reconstruction and resurfacing of the surrounding basketball and volleyball courts, construction of a new playground and a surrounding chain-linked fence, and the designation of a boat turnaround area.

Some residents are concerned the park is serviced by an individual wastewater system consisting of a septic tank and leach field, with no plans to address high bacteria levels found at the beach. However, Honma said that part of the project will be installing as system that will pump the sludge out of the comfort station area and away from the beach.

“We have to protect the beach, this beautiful resource we have. And, I think the community will be happy to see the improvements that are made with this project,” Honma said.

He said that project is scheduled to start in March and take 10 months to complete.

When Papaʻaloa Gym was demolished in 2022 after Hawaii County determined the building’s extensive termite damage and general decrepitude rendered it unsalvageable, replacing it became a top priority. 

The prior administration secured $5 million in state funds along with a matching amount of county funds to build a covered play court over the site of the previous gym. This project also is targeted to start in March and take 16 to 18 months to complete. 

“One of the most common asks from people on our island is for more recreational facilities for their sports and activities,” Honma said. “With all the recreational space we have, more is needed and we have to think about the whole island.”

While these projects have funding set aside, it may be difficult to secure more funding for larger park and recreation projects in the near future due to the Hilo Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades that will eat up a lot of the capital improvement project funding, Honma said. 

“The wastewater treatment plan is the elephant in the room for the county, so it will be up to the council members and the mayor to come together to identify priorities and where funding should go,” Honma said. “Once they set those priorities, we will definitely be here to support those projects and ensure they get done so we can promote more safe recreation.”

Alameda has said his priorities include new lights at the baseball field in Kohala, lights on one of the fields in Kaʻu, either in Naʻalehu or Pahala, and several projects within Old Kona Airport State Recreation Area in Kailua-Kona.

“The Kohala baseball lights will be finished in three to four weeks if not sooner and for Kaʻu, we plan to put out a design bid for both Naʻalehu and Pahala and work with (Councilmember Michelle Galimba) to see which one should go out to bid for the contract,” Honma said. 

The Old Airport improvements include:

• Two new comfort stations that will replace both comfort stations near the shoreline
• One comfort station designed to supplement the events pavilion, the canoe halau and the Makaʻeo Walking Path
• Demolition of the old terminal building 
• Replacing the old terminal building with a comfort station and concession area

The three new comfort stations are estimated at $3.5 million and the terminal building work is estimated at $4 million.

“I can see both these projects moving this year and I know the mayor wants to see them done,” Honma said. 

To continue having safe recreational facilities, the department also will start working on securing more skilled maintenance crew positions such as plumbers, electricians, painters and people with building maintenance experience, especially for facilities on the west side. 

“We’ve been sending out our Hilo crew to the west side, which means they need to travel for a total of three hours sometimes, leaving them with only four to five hours of work,” Honma said. “There have been too many new facilities added for our small crew to address. Part of our focus this year and next year will be getting our maintenance crew stronger and getting a little more help to address work orders more efficiently and quickly.” 

As a co-founder and coach of Flygirlz Basketball Organization and a coordinator for the Jimmy Yagi basketball camp, Honma also has been bringing his experience as a youth recreation advocate to the position. 

He said it is important to focus on providing and maintaining safe programming for keiki, like Learn-to-Swim and Summer Fun, and kupuna, like kupuna softball. 

“The Learn-to-Swim is a big program for us since we are surrounded by the ocean and kids need to be comfortable in the water. Exposing them at an early age is so important,” Honma said. “For kupuna softball, it is more than just keeping them physically active, but the socialization aspect is key to keeping their minds sharp.”

Parks and Recreation is currently recruiting permanent position lifeguards to support the expansion of swimming lesson programs as well as temporary positions for the Summer Fun programs, which give keiki a place to go for activities and fun opportunities during summer break.

Two weeks ago, the Parks and Recreation Division of Culture and Education helped put on the Waimea Cherry Blossom Festival, and today, Honma will be attending the Panaʻewa Stampede Rodeo because the department oversees the Pana’ewa Equestrian Center. 

“Our hours go beyond Monday through Friday, but the work is important and I am excited to keep serving the county in this important capacity,” Honma said. “Since I was last director, I have been able to see the fruits of our labor come from the seeds we planted in the past, and continuing with that mindset is what we plan to do moving forward.”

To learn more about the Parks and Recreation Divisions, find open position applications or get updates on facilities, visit the County of Hawaiʻi Parks and Recreation website.